Contents Under Pressure or Why my brain is too big for my skull...
So, some of you know that I had an MRI back in September, which showed that my cerebellar tonsils are ectopic by 7mm. They're not supposed to do that. They're supposed to stop at the foramen magnum. So, I've been doing some research (shocking, I know) and we're back to something that we've already been suspecting for a long time...
Chiari One Malformation. What this means essentially is that the cerebellar tonsils are inhibiting the flow of the cerebrospinal fluid, which is basically the oil that makes your brain and other things do their jobs. Without it nothing works properly. I haven't been diagnosed yet, but I'm really concerned that it is Chiari. It adds up. In addition to the migraines---which I've had in some way my whole life, although they've been increasing both in frequency and magnitude over the past four or five years---and the deal with the cerebellar tonsils (The medical requirements for a diagnosis of Borderline Chiari One stipulates that tonsils ranging from 1mm to 5mm qualify)...
The pressure and pain in my skull haven't dropped below 5 in nearly three weeks now. It's not just a migraine. This is pain beyond that. Imagine the worst migraine you've ever had and then add a vice at the base of your skull. A vice with spikes that dig into your neck...and it never leaves...
A pressure level of 2 is normal for me. It never drops below that. Some days the pressure is so bad that it seriously feels like my eyeballs and my ears will just burst...
I have over half of the things on the Chiari symptoms list. Have had them for years now, in fact. But things are getting worse...I'm noticing that some of my motor skills are slightly off. For instance, I'll stumble a little while standing completely still, because for a split second it doesn't feel like the floor is there. And generally speaking, I'm a pretty graceful person...
I have another appointment with Dr. Economou later this month. So, we'll see how that goes. The downside here is that I don't have medical insurance (Medical turned me down because I am over 21 and not pregnant), so if it really is Chiari and I get it diagnosed I will never be able to get insurance. Pre-existing condition, blah blah blah...
There's a lot more to this update, but it's 11:30 in the a.m. and I've been awake for too long (as per usual), so I'm going to go and attempt to pass out. I'll keep you guys posted...
Chiari One Malformation. What this means essentially is that the cerebellar tonsils are inhibiting the flow of the cerebrospinal fluid, which is basically the oil that makes your brain and other things do their jobs. Without it nothing works properly. I haven't been diagnosed yet, but I'm really concerned that it is Chiari. It adds up. In addition to the migraines---which I've had in some way my whole life, although they've been increasing both in frequency and magnitude over the past four or five years---and the deal with the cerebellar tonsils (The medical requirements for a diagnosis of Borderline Chiari One stipulates that tonsils ranging from 1mm to 5mm qualify)...
The pressure and pain in my skull haven't dropped below 5 in nearly three weeks now. It's not just a migraine. This is pain beyond that. Imagine the worst migraine you've ever had and then add a vice at the base of your skull. A vice with spikes that dig into your neck...and it never leaves...
A pressure level of 2 is normal for me. It never drops below that. Some days the pressure is so bad that it seriously feels like my eyeballs and my ears will just burst...
I have over half of the things on the Chiari symptoms list. Have had them for years now, in fact. But things are getting worse...I'm noticing that some of my motor skills are slightly off. For instance, I'll stumble a little while standing completely still, because for a split second it doesn't feel like the floor is there. And generally speaking, I'm a pretty graceful person...
I have another appointment with Dr. Economou later this month. So, we'll see how that goes. The downside here is that I don't have medical insurance (Medical turned me down because I am over 21 and not pregnant), so if it really is Chiari and I get it diagnosed I will never be able to get insurance. Pre-existing condition, blah blah blah...
There's a lot more to this update, but it's 11:30 in the a.m. and I've been awake for too long (as per usual), so I'm going to go and attempt to pass out. I'll keep you guys posted...